Resources and tools for county child welfare agencies in New York State to implement the federal Family First Prevention Services Act law.

This toolkit from Onondaga County provides the process and tools the county used to develop a case review process designed to reduce congregate care placements by regularly monitoring youths' progress and determining ongoing need for this level of care.

This document is a protocol to require a higher level of approval for all non-kinship placements.

This brief presentation provides an overview of the Family First Readiness initiative, designed to help counties prepare their systems for Family First implementation by decreasing their use of congregate care and increasing their use of certified kinship and family-based foster care.

This toolkit provides instructions on how to assess barriers to effective kinship foster care training, certification and support.

The Kinship Specialist/Navigator serves as a resource for families by addressing their needs and assessing the impact of specific programming, systems, policies and procedures.

This policy from Onondaga County describes the district policies designed to create a kin-first culture, which will reduce congregate care and increase the use of kinship placements and permanency.

This is a sample form used in Connecticut to request a waiver for typical foster home requirements to facilitate kinship placements and reduce barriers to kinship certification.

This guide outlines the critical strategies for jurisdictions to develop a "kin-first" placement culture and practice.

A RACI matrix is a tool designed to clarify team members' roles and responsibilities in the implementation of new initiatives. RACI is an acronym that describes four main roles: Responsible, Accountable, Consulted and Informed.

This guide provides strategies for how counties may choose to spend their transition funds to meet the goals of the Family First Transition Fund.